More than 82,200 eligible lawyers are expected to participate in the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) national election scheduled for July 18, where members will elect a new president and other national officers to lead the association.

The election will be conducted electronically under the supervision of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA), with the successful presidential candidate set to succeed the incumbent NBA President, Afam Osigwe (SAN).

Three Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) have been cleared to contest the association’s top office. They are Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN), Lateef Akangbe (SAN), and Oyinkansola Badejo-Okunsanya (SAN), all of whom emerged after the ECNBA released its final list of qualified candidates.

The forthcoming poll comes amid recent controversy over alleged attempts to delay the election. However, the NBA leadership has maintained that the exercise will proceed as scheduled, insisting that only the association’s constitutional organs have the authority to alter the election timetable.

The ECNBA has also published the branch-by-branch voters’ register and urged eligible members to verify their details ahead of the poll, reaffirming its commitment to conducting a free, transparent and credible election.